Chapter 301 300. First in the early stage!

After Zhang Yang scored on the counterattack, the two teams played two more rounds, and the Bobcats failed to score.

Yao Ming stayed under the basket, Joe Smith defended at close range, Duhon, Sefolosha and Nocioni actively switched defense, and on the Bobcats side, Okafor and Hill had poor shooting accuracy after fighting with Yao Ming, and Rondo couldn't score even after breaking through... They fell into a positional battle, and had already scored 14 points in a single quarter. Zhang Yang was almost enjoying the treatment of being double-teamed without the ball.

In the counterattack, the Bobcats could not move forward after several rounds.

After all, they are not a fast-break team. The tactics are arranged temporarily, and the cooperation is purely based on tacit understanding and personal ability. The players have no experience in running and gunning. When they are fast, there is extra running, and the distribution of physical strength is not good enough...

In particular, they tried their best to retreat and ensure basic defense, which determined that they could not become a pure offensive team like the Suns.

Fortunately, the Bulls did not score in these two rounds. Yao Ming, a 137-kg big man, scored five consecutive rounds in the second half of the quarter. He was a little injured and all his open shots missed.

With Zhang Yang's three-point buzzer-beater throughout the game flying out of bounds, at the end of the first quarter, the Bobcats led the Bulls by 24 points 18 to 6!
Scales is really cracking!
Being 6 points behind is not a big deal. Facing the Bobcats, their attrition strategy tonight made it difficult for them to gain a lead in the score.

The effect of consumption strategy...

Yao Ming's singles scoring offensive forced Zhang Yang, who had already attacked for 7 rounds in the first half of the quarter, to continue shooting, in order to consume Zhang Yang's touch... This failed, and the Bobcats launched a strong fast break, offsetting Yao Ming's powerful offensive of scoring 3 goals in a row.

Use Nocioni's rough confrontation to wear down Mike Miller's touch... This also failed. After Mike Miller came on the court, the Bobcats rarely fell into positional battles. Nocioni couldn't take the initiative to seek confrontation during the offense.

But it cannot be said that the strategy completely failed. Okafor and Hill, two players who usually have very stable shooting skills, each missed a shot in the last two rounds.

Although this is far from ideal, it can be utilized. If these two players cannot shoot accurately from close range or mid-range, the rim protectors can stay at the basket with more peace of mind, and the outside players can focus more on defending other people and don't have to worry about these two brothers.

So on the tactical level, Skiles didn't really have much to be dissatisfied with, as the players played very well.

The point where Skiles broke apart - in the 4 and a half minutes after the official timeout, Yao Ming played 5 rounds alone, shot 4 times, and missed one shot.

张杨9投6中，加上2中2的罚球，单节14分；姚明8投5中，加上2中2的罚球，单节12分，两人首节都打满了。

As a center who can compete with top outside scorers in scoring, Skiles feels that there is no better inside player in the league than Yao Ming in terms of one-on-one scoring.

It's just that Yao Ming is already so tired——

Although the bad boy Jack on the opposing team took 10 shots in a single quarter and was very tired, he was definitely not as tired as Yao Ming.

The ancients said that injuring one thousand enemies and losing eight hundred of your own is a bad strategy.

Their performance in the first quarter was not even a bad one. They inflicted at most 500 casualties on the enemy, and 1,000 casualties on their own!
Skiles looked at the opposing bench: Not only was your baldness infected by Bickerstaff, but your coaching style was also infected, right!

...

Being 6 points behind in a single quarter was not a big deal for the Bulls. In the second quarter, after entering the next rotation lineup, the Bulls played very strongly.

The Bulls traded for Yao Ming. The only main player from last season who lost was Ben Gordon. Yao Ming led Nocioni, the weakest player in the starting lineup, and three substitutes, Duhon, Sefolosha, and Joe Smith, to play back and forth with the Bobcats, who had Zhang Yang and Okafor on the court at the same time, and only lost by 3 points in the first half. The effect of this was -

Hinrich, Luol Deng and Ben Wallace can rest together. When Yao Ming goes down to rest in the second quarter, the three can play together!

Hinrich enjoyed the fun that only Wade could enjoy in previous years... In Hinrich's mind, the opportunity to partner with the Sharks should have belonged to him.

The Bulls' consumption tactics in the first quarter did work. The Bobcats had to send one of Hill and Okafor to ensure the mid-range shooting and passing abilities of the front line, but neither of them could make the shot. The Bulls players could focus more on the basket and blocking three-pointers.

Led by Hinrich and Ben Wallace, the Bulls scored 6 to 11 in 13 minutes and 9 seconds.

Halfway through the second quarter, the Bulls narrowed the gap to 2 points, with the score 31 to 33!

But after the official timeout, Zhang Yang came back on the court and made a layup with a European step before Yao Ming came on.

Then Zhang Yang moved to the wing and together with Felton who switched defense, he double-teamed Luol Deng and successfully completed the steal!

Zhang Yangqi made a counterattack layup and caused the defending Sefrosa to foul. He also made the free throw... 38 to 31, the score difference reached 7 points!
The Bulls chased for half a quarter and finally narrowed the gap to 1 goal to tie or overtake. After the timeout, Hinrich had just slowed down his offense and just started to use pick-and-roll to create a mismatch singles opportunity for Luol Deng, but he was beaten 5-0 by Zhang Yang!

Hinrich had no choice but to regroup and attack to counter the momentum of Zhang Yang and his team to widen the score gap.

By the end of the second quarter, Skiles was even more depressed.

Yao Ming, who had rested for 9 minutes before the game, still looked tired when he took off his training suit. Skiles assigned him the task of protecting the rim.

After Yao Ming came on the court, he did not try to be too strong, but he was able to play a good role in attacking or passing the ball.

But if he plays like this, it is enough to use Millsap or Hill to defend him. He cuts in slowly, and even if he crushes the opponent's forwards and cuts to the basket, the Bobcats' inside players can get in position in time. It is effective, but definitely not as good as in the first quarter.

Seeing Zhang Yang full of energy again after resting for half a quarter, while Yao Ming still looked tired... Skiles regretted it so much, if he had not thought of using the little giant's fierce attack to force the bad boys to continue playing one-on-one during the official timeout in the first quarter.

However, Skiles was depressed only because the situation in the second half of the first quarter was different from what he expected, and that he was unable to continue his strong performance before the official timeout after the official timeout in the second quarter.

The Bulls did not play badly after being beaten 5-0 by Zhang Yang, and the Bobcats did not play easily either.

Skiles' expectation for tonight's game is to crush the league's number one team... The Bulls also encountered some of the psychological problems that the Bobcats encountered during their 13-game winning streak, and they were even more serious, mainly because of the head coach.

In the first six years of Carlisle's coaching career, he experienced two ups and downs. When he came to the third team, he was extremely nervous at the beginning. He did not get carried away during the winning streak and was even worried about how to beat those strong opponents after the easy schedule.

Skiles' confidence has been swelled since the Bulls' winning streak overtook the Pistons and moved to second place in the Eastern Conference. No matter who they play, the strategic plan is to take the opponent away in one wave, and they have done it in the first few games. The final score difference is not big because he let the core players rest for a long time... The situation of tonight's game is very different from what he expected, and his mentality is naturally affected. After Zhang Yang beat the Bulls 5-0, the Bulls scored 12-9 in the rest of the second quarter, narrowing the score difference to 4 points at the end of the half, but Skiles was still not satisfied.

The Bobcats and the Bulls started a long tug-of-war, continuing to compete around the score difference of around 5 points.

第三节前半段山猫队15比11小胜公牛队4分，将分差拉开到8分，后半节公牛队还了山猫队一个半节14比9，将分差重新缩小到3分……

Halfway through the final quarter, Felton received a pass from Zhang Yang who was trapped, and hit a long two-point shot from the baseline. The score came to 84 to 78, and the Bobcats' lead reached 6 points!
In the past 5 minutes, the Bobcats scored 13 to 10!
It was the Bulls' turn to attack, and it was a crucial moment. Hinrich stood up again, hitting a long two-point shot after a screen, bringing the score difference back to within 5 points.

When the Bobcats attacked next, Hinrich predicted Millsap's passing intention from the high post, acted decisively, swatted the ball away, and did not give in in the fight with Millsap. He took control of the ball first and called a timeout in time.

The referee blew the whistle to stop the game. With 6 minutes and 13 seconds left, the game entered its last official timeout. The score was 84 to 88, and the Bulls were only 4 points behind and had possession of the ball!
Hinrich's performance in these two rounds was highly praised by the TV commentators.

But after the timeout, Hinrich came up and took a three-pointer with the help of a screen...but the shot was out of bounds!

Facing Okafor's switch to pick-and-roll, Hinrich wanted to take a shot, but he jumped after quickly going around the screen, but his legs were weak! Not enough power!
Hinrich's physical strength is average. After resting for more than four minutes in the first quarter, he played the entire second quarter. He only rested for less than two minutes at the beginning of the third quarter, and then stayed on the court the whole time. He only rested for two minutes in the first three and a half quarters combined, and played for 4 minutes in the first three and a half quarters, far exceeding the season average. His average playing time per game this season is only 37 minutes.

Moreover, because Luol Deng was the focus of defense tonight, Yao Ming's offense was very weak in the last three quarters after his fierce performance in the first quarter. Hinrich has been carrying the offensive burden and has scored 23 points and 5 assists. Most of his points were scored by dribbling the ball and he was already exhausted.

In the offense and defense before the official timeout, he basically relied on his body instincts to perform the movements, relying purely on solid offensive and defensive basics and muscle memory.

If there was no timeout, Hinrich would have been tense and could have held on for a while. But after the timeout, he thought he could finally rest for a while, so he relaxed his body. When the timeout came back, he wanted to tense up again. He had a strong mental quality, so it was easy for him to tense up his mind, but his body didn't obey...

The offense and defense switched, the Bobcats attacked, and Zhang Yang received the ball outside the three-point line and played against Hinrich.

Hinrich can no longer hold it in, but Zhang Yang is in the right state!

Due to various factors, Hinrich's playing time and the offensive burden he carried tonight exceeded his ability to bear. After Zhang Yang played the entire first quarter, he rested for half a quarter in the second quarter and for 4 minutes in the middle of the third quarter. So far, he has only played for 32 minutes!

After his teammates got into position, Zhang Yang started to break through. He played it very simply, with a cross step and change of direction, going to the right!
Hinrich determined the direction Zhang Yang was going and moved in time. Yao Ming under the basket and Ben Wallace at the other elbow also moved in coordination.

But Zhang Yang did not continue to advance. He braked after entering the three-point line, collected the ball, and stepped back...

Hinrich was selected for the second defense despite his average physical condition. His defensive prediction ability is one of the best among all the guards in the league. He predicted Zhang Yang's action again, braked his feet, and rushed forward again... He regretted it as soon as he rushed forward!

Zhang Yang used the 'Hamblen step-back shot', grabbing the ball and raising it to shoot while stepping back!

Hinrich rushed forward and bumped into Zhang Yang, who was just a little bit away from landing. At this time, Zhang Yang had already thrown the ball.

The referee blew the whistle, and almost at the same time, the ball went into the frame!
The assistant referee confirmed that Zhang Yang's jumping point was within the three-point line, so the long two-point goal was valid and a penalty was added!

After being hit by Hinrich, Zhang Yang's feet immediately touched the ground. He withstood the impact and did not fall. He also helped Hinrich steady himself before turning around and high-fiving his teammates to celebrate.

Xin Liqi looked at Zhang Yang's back... You might as well let me fall flat on my face! Can't you just let me lie there for a while?
The excellent performance of both offense and defense before the official timeout, and after the official timeout, all of this offense and defense came out in full force!

Hinrich was convinced that Zhang Yang's step-back shot was not a three-pointer but a two-pointer.

If Zhang Yang first steps out of the three-point line and then jumps to shoot, he will most likely be able to get in position and limit Zhang Yang's ability to jump after stepping back. Zhang Yang is prepared for even this.

However, when thinking about this, Hinrich had a sense of shameful pride - his defensive ability was recognized by the most talented player in history, but this ball was scored as 2+1...

...

Zhang Yang also made the free throw, making it 2+1, the score came to 87 to 80, and the lead expanded to 7 points.

In this game, this round after the official timeout became the most crucial one.

Hinrich couldn't hold on, Zhang Yang withstood the pressure and scored 2+1, and the Bobcats' victory was secured!

After another round, Hinrich was substituted and replaced by Du Hong.

Yao Ming propped up his tired body and started again... His playing time tonight was actually not bad, 12 minutes in the first quarter, 3 minutes in the second quarter, 9 minutes in the third quarter, and when Hinrich was substituted in the final quarter, he played for 7 and a half minutes, just over 30 minutes. Even if he played the remaining 4 and a half minutes, it would only be 36 minutes, which was within the time he could maintain his form.

He was particularly tired tonight, and it was purely because of the last four minutes of the first quarter.

Yao Ming led the team in the main attack despite his tired body. The Bulls performed well, but when the regular offense was blocked and a player was needed to score by personal ability, the Bulls had no one... When the Bobcats' point difference was reduced to 3 points twice, someone stood up, Zhang Yang made a breakthrough layup, and Mike Miller made a three-pointer...

At 10:24 pm, the final whistle sounded.

首节14分、第二节8分、第三节10分、末节9分……张杨出场38分钟，28投14中，其中三分球5投3中，加上12中10的罚球，拿到41分12板3助攻2抢断1盖帽。

姚明今晚22投12中，拿到31分8板5助攻1抢断3盖帽。

At first glance at the two players' data, it is really difficult to tell who is the inside player and who is the outside player.

Of Zhang Yang's 12 rebounds, 7 were obtained in the first quarter. His fighting spirit shocked the Bulls' two point guards.

张杨41分、奥卡福14分9板2助攻2盖帽、隆多2分6板5助攻、费尔顿14分、迈克-米勒15分……97比92，山猫队5分险胜，终结公牛队11连胜！

The Bobcats dominated the early part of the season with a record of 22 wins and 4 losses, beating the Bulls with a record of 20 wins and 6 losses!
(End of this chapter)